This is why no one lets Alanna get bored
by OverlordK
Summary: The war between Scanra and Tortall is winding down, and a peace treaty is in the making. Most of the fighting is over, so is the need for the armies. Alanna is stuck in Corus for the peace talks with not much to do. What kind of trouble will she get in?
1. Chapter 1 New Project

**Greetings to you all! This is the first fanfic I have written, and I hope for it not to suck! So the summary is this: The war between Scanra and Tortall is winding down, and a peace treaty may be in the making. So most of the fighting is over and so is the need for the armies. **

**Summary:**

**So Alana is stuck in Corus for the peace talks with not much to do. So let's see what kind of trouble the King's Champion can get herself into.**

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><p>This is Why No One Lets Alana Get Bored<p>

Chapter 1- New Project

Alanna finally had a break. The war winding down rather quickly; few rebellions and raids were still happening, but those were easily squashed down by well armed settlements and fiefs on the borders, and soldiers of the crown that were making regular patrols. The rumors that were circulating around about Scanra signing a peace treaty with Tortall were even beginning to come to fruition. All of this peace left Alana bored out of her skull though.

It wasn't that any of these were bad things. On the contrary; it would be an easier and safer life for everyone if Scanra were at peace with Tortall. It was just bad for a stir-crazy knight; even the rouge Immortals that normally plagued the countryside were being exceptionally quiet. With all that being as it may, the only thing for Alana to do was attend negotiations, banquets, and parties. The only thing that Alana had to look forward to was when some of the Scanran warriors decided that her title as King's Champion was a novelty of the king's, and that they, being big strong men, could easily best her. That was when she would have the chance to get her hands dirty and trounce some foolish whelps. Until then, she would just have to make nice with the dignitaries and find something else to be entertained with.

So here Alanna found herself leaning against a pillar near the stable yards trying to think up a new project. As she was staring fixatedly at post, she felt a presence behind her. Before she could react, she felt an arm snake around her waist and settle across her stomach. Alana relaxed as she inhaled her husband's sent and leaned against his chest. "Y'know George, if anyone else tried what you just did, they would find themselves flat on their back halfway across the yard, and I'm still contemplating whether or not you deserve it anyways." Baron George Cooper of Pirates Swoop chuckled as he settled his head on top of hers and replied; "Now lassie, you know you don't be wanting to fight with your dearly beloved when we should be taking advantage of this calm." Alanna's huff in response made him look down at his feisty wife. "What's the matter lass? You look ready to skewer the first man to rub you the wrong way. Is there anything I can do to take some of that iron out of your gaze?"

Alanna looked up at her husband and sighed again. It was a rare occurrence for George to be able to leave Pirate's Swoop and be able to spend time with her. With the war coming to a close and reliable people keeping him up-to-date, George had been requested to help smooth over the negotiation talks. She should be enjoying the time she got to spend with him and her other friends, but the itch to do something productive was bothering her greatly.

"I'm just so bored George. There is nothing here for me to do but look pretty, and you know how I feel about that."

"Well then, we'll just have to find something interesting for you to do while we're here."

"And what pray tell do you…"

Alanna was interrupted by the sound of hoof beats. The pair looked out from under the arch to see the New Hope delegates arrive, escorted into the stable courtyard by a few men of the third company of the King's Own. George and Alanna watched as Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan and Sir Nealan of Queenscove dismounted along with some others including Sergeant Domitan on Masbolle. Alanna was about to leave the shadows to greet her former squire and her successor, but George pulled her further into the shadows instead. "Give them a moment," he whispered before his wife could protest, "I want to see something."

Alanna wanted to argue, but there was a certain look that the former King of the Rouge had in his eyes, one that the Lioness usually saw on his face when he had come across a good bit of information or an important detail that no one else saw, so she settled back into the crook of his arms and waited for him to finish being cryptic.

The scene before them continued to unfold with the two Knights and the Sergeant catching up as their horses were lead away by an eager horse-hearted lad by the name of Toby. The light banter of the three friends floated across the yard, mostly jabs at Neal and his desperation to see his "Yamani blossom" and all of the other yammering that poor Kel had had to endure on the long ride to Corus. Dom was giving a blushing Kel his condolences with a wink and an overly courtly bow, when Neal took advantage of the bent over figure, and booted Dom strait into a fresh pile of hay that had just been brought up. While Neal was backing up laughing at his own stroke of brilliance, he caught his foot on a loose bit of stone. His attempts to stay upright while stepping backwards resulted in him falling into a water barrel. Alanna had to suppress a guffaw at these antics, and she could feel her husband's chest rumble with his own suppressed laughter.

Meanwhile, Kel had helped Dom out of the pile of hay, then turned around to reprimand her other friend. The position that the resident Meathead was stuck in, combined with the disgruntled look on his face, set both of the other two off in a round of laughter, bellows of it from the Sergeant and giggles from the Lady Knight. An odd look crossed Dom's face as he looked over at Kel, but just as quickly as it had come it was gone, and he was begging for some help removing the dry bits of grass from his person while they both pointedly ignored Neal's pleas for help. "Now here's where things may get interesting," Alanna heard her husband murmur. So Alanna watched the pair more carefully.

Kel was gently, but quickly, brushing the hay bits from Dom's back, while he swatted at the front of his clothes. Things like the Sergeant's rear were passed over with a speedier hand and a faint coloring of the Lady Knight's face. Dom was facing away from the eavesdroppers, bent over double, so they couldn't see his expression. Nothing else interesting occurred until Kel pointed out all of the straw stuck is Dom's hair. She pulled his head forward and began tenderly removing the bits of hay. "I can certainly see things getting 'interesting' here," Alana whispered with a grin as she pointed to blushing Lady Knight.

"Aye yes, but you're missing half of the story my dear," George replied as he pointed to the Sergeant. Dom had a bemused and flushed look on his face; he was also trying to look everywhere but at his friend's chest. Neither of the two seemed to notice the other's reaction to their almost-intimate closeness.

Suddenly Neal's struggling tipped over the water barrel and he rolled out with a yell. These actions had the same effect on the quiet moment as someone hurling a brick at a pane of glass. The suspenseful atmosphere was shattered as Kel and Dom jumped away from each other. Dom was the first to recover, and hid the awkwardness of the situation by once again laughing at his cousin; Kel followed, her Yamani famous mask pulled into place; she yanked her fellow Knight to his feet and proceeded to reprimand him for the entire mess being his fault.

An argument might have taken place after that, but the bell chose that moment to ring, reminding everyone that it would be noontime in an hour. Gear was distributed between the two knights, and then they all went their separate ways two settle in with a promise that all three of the would meet for lunch.

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><p>When Alanna and George made it back to their rooms, Alanna could contain herself no longer. She had been trying to speak since they watched The Lady Knight and Sergeant in the stable yard together, but her husband had kept silencing her. "How has no one noticed this before!" she finally exclaimed. "I mean the looks, the dynamics between the two, is the entire castle blind and stupid? How could this have gone on for so long and…?" George put his hand to his wife's lips to silence her, and it took some willpower on her part to not bite his hand.<p>

"Kel is a quiet lass dear one. Why would she ruin a dear friendship with something she considers unimportant? The Lady Knight we know has forsaken her personal life for those that she loves her whole life. Why would now be any different for her?"

"What about Dom? He may be a bit of a flirt, but he's a good guy. I don't think he would ignore that kind of obvious…"

"But that's the thing love, he has no idea he has theses feelings."

"But, what about that scene we just saw."

"He may be beginning to notice that his 'good friend' is more than just a fellow warrior, but it still hasn't hit home for him yet."

This theoretical talking around in circles was giving Alanna a headache. She needed to get these thing set strait in plain speak or her head would explode. Or she would kill her husband. Or both, but either option was, in her opinion, an unpleasant way to spend the hour before lunch. "Ok," she began. "Let me get some things straight."

"If that's what you need love"

"Watch it George, I may still smack you."

"Sorry love."

"Fine, let's set down the facts. So, Kel is in love with Dom, but she doesn't want to ruin her friendship with him, so she's keeping quiet about her feelings."

"Yes"

"And Dom may like Kel?"

"Unless I'm wrong, which is a very rare happening, than the Sergeant is staring to see our dear Lady Knight in a new light. This is going to make him step lightly around her for the time being."

"So the two of them are just going to dance around each other for the rest of time? That's awful!"

There was a moment of heavy silence between the couple, each deep in thought. Alanna's mind was racing with the loneliness that her successor must be feeling. She knew from experience how hard it was to be among men where no one thought of you as anything more than one on the boys. She knew all about the craving for a tender touch that would almost surely never come.

"I suppose there is sommat we could do to aid them," George mused aloud finally breaking the building tension. Alanna looked over at her husband in a way that clearly meant she was waiting for him to elaborate. "Well if two parties cannot reach a reasonable conclusion to a problem, then a third party is called in to assist." George was smiling a way that told Alana that he had a plan, and a clever one at that; she motioned for him to continue. "Well I just had a brilliant idea for a project for you. This new project is productive, will keep you plenty entertained, and if all goes well, it will have a nice outcome that will make most everyone's lives a little better." By the end of this statement, he was grinning ear-to-ear

"What are you getting at, you old trickster?" She had an inkling of what was going on, but she wanted to be sure before she jumped to any conclusions.

"Alana my dear, how would you like to play Matchmaker?"

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><p><strong>So that's the first chapter of the first fanfic I've ever posted. I would appreciate any kinds of reviews, even if you do flame the beejezus out of my story.<strong>

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><p><strong>Just an update for this first chapter. I was going back to check a few details, and I saw a few thing that just really needed to be changed, such as spelling errors, forgotten bits of words, and missing dialog. I think I may go back and fix all of the chapters, just so that it makes more sense. Let me know how you feel<strong>


	2. Chapter 2 Dresses

**Thanks to everyone who wrote reviews for me! Nothing is a better confidence booster than seeing that people are already waiting for the next chapter the next day. I want to thank each and every one of the people that are already following and favoriting me. I also want to that **_**TamariChan**_** for pointing out my misspelling of Alanna's name; I blame Microsoft word for that one. I thank all of you that have reviewed. I will answer comments and questions when I get them, and I will post them with each new chapter. I hope I can stay as true to the characters as possible. If I do miss a detail though, feel free to tell me. Lots of love and wish me luck; on with chapter two!**

Dresses

Half past midday found Dom and Neal in the mess hall with lunch trays in hand, heading to a table far away from the doors. The room was getting quite crowded, due to all of the delegates, their soldiers, and knights coming to the peace talks. The cousins were lucky that they had a group of friends that had already staked out a fairly large table in the back of the room. It looked like everyone was already there with the exception of Kel. In her stead was a lady in deep conversation with some of the men. She had her back to the two men, so neither of them could see her face. There was something familiar about her, though Neal could swear he had never seen her make an appearance in court.

It wasn't uncommon for there to be women kept from Court until they reach a marriageable age, but it was strange to see her at a table full of soldiers and knights. It was possible that the boys had picked up a noblewoman from the delegation party. There weren't many, but there were enough of them for the explanation to be plausible; some of the boys could be charming when they wanted to be.

Neal was about to make a comment on all of this when he heard his cousin's sharp intake of breath. "Mithros," Dom breathed. His tone was a mixture of shock and awe. He just seen the mystery girl's profile as she turned to reply to a comment Seaver had just made. "What," Neal drawled, a sardonic grin on his spreading across his lips when he saw the gob-smacked look on his cousin's face, "you act like you've never seen a pretty girl before."

"Meathead…" Dom began, reaching for his cousins with a twitching hand. "Well I am quite flattered that you think I look pretty today dear meathead." Cut in a familiar and female voice before Dom had a chance to smack his idiotic cousin upside the head for being so dense. When the Lady in question turned around Neal almost dropped his tray in surprise and let out a startled squawk, "Kel?"

*Flashback*

_Alanna had shown up at Kel's set of rooms a few minutes before half of the hour before midday. Kel had just finished unpacking and reading the more pertinent messages left for her on her work table. She was heading to the baths to clean up after her long ride that morning when she heard the rapping on her door. When she answered, she was delighted to greet her role model and friend. _

"_What brings you to my rooms? I thought you would be in meetings, or catching up with Raoul and Buri."_

"_Those two are a little too preoccupied with being newlyweds to notice anything else. How else do you think Jon got Raoul here with so little a fight?"_

"_But, what about the meetings?"_

"_Oh the peace talks don't begin officially for another three days. There's going to be an official welcoming banquet tomorrow night; that's when the last of the delegation party will show up. Besides, I would gladly spare time to catch up on things with my protégé."_

_Kel ducked her head at this comment. She was honored that someone as great as Alanna, the King's Champion and first Lady Knight in over a century, wanted to spend time with her._

"_So where are you headed?" Alanna asked, noting that her young friend had been about to go out. "_

"_Oh, I was just about to head to the baths. I feel like having nice soak in real bath before the noon meal."_

"_I understand that feeling. Would you mind if I joined you?"_

"_No, not at all just let me finish getting my things and we can go."_

_Kel grabbed a clean set of breeches, shirt, tunic and was about to grab some clean stockings when she caught Alanna staring at her pointedly. "Is that really what you plan on wearing?" Alanna asked incredulously. Kel took a quick look at the garments in her hands, examining each of them to make sure there were no stains or tears on any of them that she had failed to notice. "Is there something wrong with them?" She finally asked, worried that she was missing something important. _

"_Don't you ever get tired of dressing like a boy?"_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Kel, that's a man's outfit if I've ever seen one."_

"_But you're wearing trousers."_

"_Yes, but my outfit has a feminine touch to it." Alanna explained, gesturing to the soft colors and pretty embroideries. Kel had to admit that she envied the outfit; it accentuated The Lioness' figure and the cool colors made the color of her eyes pop._

"_Don't you have anything pretty to wear?"_

"_There wasn't much use for that kind of frippery over at New Hope."_

"_Yes, but didn't you get anything for the peace talks and all of the parties?"_

_Alanna suppressed a grin when she saw the girl squirm a little. "Well?" Alanna waved her hand, prompting Kel to continue. The young knight still didn't say anything, but instead looked over at her clothespress with a slightly pained expression. Alanna strode over to it with purpose and flung it open, revealing several dresses in rich tones._

"_I've been corresponding with Lalassa for past couple of months. She insisted on making me a wardrobe for the peace talks using the measurements she took for the dress that I wore to Raoul's and Buri's wedding." Kel explained this all with a downcast gaze then continued, "I don't mean to seem ungrateful. I just haven't worn a dress in a long while, not since I was a squire. When I do wear a dress, I just look like a cow in dress anyways."_

_Alanna sighed; she had heard from Neal once or twice that Kel's older sisters had brainwashed her into believing that she was unattractive and unlovable. She also understood questioning her own femininity; after all she had spent 8 years pretending to be a boy. But Alanna had had George, and at certain times Jon, to remind her that she was a woman. Kel on the other hand had only comrades that saw her as good fighter and friend. That was why this first part of her plan was so crucial._

"_You are no cow, and Lalassa can sew a fine frock," Alanna stated to Kel while she pulled out the necessary garments needed to wear the dress of a proper lady. "We can bathe then get you ready in my chambers; I need to reintroduce you to the intricacies of dressing like a woman." With that she grabbed the clothes and the younger knight before she could further protest and trooped her to the women's bath house._

*Flashback end*

Watching a particular table from the head table, where she was sitting with her husband, the King and Queen, along with other various important persons, Alanna grinned to herself. The scene unfolding at the table below was even better than she could have hoped.

"What are you finding so much pleasure in dear?" George had leaned over her shoulder to look at what she was watching. "Now what kind of trouble have you started here lassie?" This comment got the attention of their half of the table; any mention of Alanna and any kind of trouble made certain people who knew her well enough quite weary.

"So you have a new project?" Queen Thayet queried with an arched brow and a knowing smile. The responding smirk from the Lioness caused everyone at their end of the table to groan. "I think I might need to go review the recruits, Raoul stated suddenly, beginning to rise from the table, "You know, keep the men in shape…" He was cut short by a hand that grabbed the back of his belt and a sharp tug that pulled him back into his seat.

"Don't be such a baby." Buri chided her husband.

"But last time I got involved in a project of Alanna's I couldn't ride a horse properly for weeks, and I missed most of the jousting season." Raoul whined.

"And I'm sure your would-be opponents wept from the loss of 'flying lessons'. Now hush you so we can hear about these plans of Alanna's."

Jon, Thayet, Buri, and reluctantly Raoul turned expectantly towards Alanna to hear about what trouble she was concocting. Alanna smiled and splayed her hands out in an innocent gesture. "I haven't really done anything, yet," Raoul visibly twitched at the word 'yet', "I have simply dressed our Dear Kelardy as a proper Lady."

"And why does that have you smiling so?" George prompted. He was almost a much in dark as the rest of the group; as soon as he had explained his idea to her, Alana had gotten a wicked grin on her face, and then she had run out of the room. He had left to go confer about a few other issues that were going to be addressed during the talks with the council shortly after that. He had also shown up for the midday meal after his wife, so he had not even seen Kel until this point.

"Well when we were hashing out your brilliant idea, I thought that to be courted like a Lady, you need to act the part. Then I remembered the reactions I got the first time I was dressed up like a proper woman." Alana explained with a pointed look at George and Jon. The two men grinned and flushed a little at the memory.

"So besides flustering men, and reminding people that Kel's a woman, what else do you have planned?" Thayet asked.

"I can only tell you if everyone agrees to help." Alana replied, looking pointedly at Raoul with a diabolical grin spread across her face while as she spoke.

Everyone else turned toward the Knight Commander expectantly. He looked from face to face to see if he had any sympathies from his friends or wife. Finding none, he hung his head with a small groan of defeat. When he looked up again, there was resigned look set on his face. "As long as it's something that will help out my former squire, I suppose I have no choice." He said with a sigh.

"Alright then," Alanna said leaning forward a little, conspiratorially, "Everyone, listen carefully, because I'm only going to explain this once…"

After a few seconds of floundering and the initial shock wore off, Neal recovered with a large, goofy grin on his face. "Well don't we clean up well, oh great Protector," Neal easily dodged the punch that Kel aimed at him, then he bent forward in an elaborate players bow, "I do apologize for offending you my lady. Would you allow a lowly cad such as myself to join you?"

Kel's stern expression faltered, then she smiled at her old friend. "You know I hate that name Neal, but I suppose that I can let you stay. Even a Meathead like you needs somewhere to eat." Kel sat back down at her previous spot while Neal went around the table to sit in a spot across from her. "You really do look great Kel," Neal said as soon as he was seated, "I don't think I've seen you in a dress since your page and squire years; Yuki will be so upset that she missed seeing you all dressed up." Kel flushed a little at this, but before she could respond Neal looked over her shoulder and called, "Hey Dom, are you going to stand there looking like a dying fish, or are you going to eat lunch with us?"

The jab at him was what brought the Sergeant back to his senses. He had never seen Kel in a dress before, and the initial shock was taking some time to wear off. Kel scooted herself and a few knights down the table then patted the bench next to her. After he had sat down, Dom was introduced to some of the knights he had not yet met. The meal continued with relative normalcy, but Dom still felt the difference in the situation. He was constantly aware of how close he was to Kel; he could feel how warm her skin was and see how well her dress fitted her.

Before his mind could wander down more dangerous paths, Dom asked, "So who do we have to thank for turning our Protector of the small into a lovely flower of court?" Kel responded first by thumping Dom on the head with a spoon. He smiled at this, it was a normal thing for Kel to do, and it gave him something else to focus on than how different she looked to him now. "Well I was about to head to the bathhouse when I heard a knock on the door," Kel began, "and when I opened it, the Lioness was standing there. She wanted to spend time with me."

Despite Kel's years of Yamani training in keeping her emotions in check, Dom could still detect the pride in her voice. He smiled again; despite her own high standing in recent history, Kel never seemed to grasp how important she was. As a result she was still a little surprised when important people wanted to spend time with her.

"So when I told her where I was going, she said she would join me," Kel continued, "Then, when I was grabbing my usual clothes she got upset with me for always dressing like a boy. So she dressed me up after we got bathed and made me promise to wear the nice clothes from the wardrobe that Lalasa sent to the castle for me. I am," she added, "Allowed to wear my normal clothes for morning practices and sparing and the like."

"Well that's good," Neal said with a relieved smile, "I don't think Yuki would forgive either of us if she missed seeing you in all of your finery." Kel looked at Neal with sudden realization then and asked, "Where is Yuki? I didn't see her when we got here this morning. With all the whining and moaning you did about not getting to Corus fast enough to see her, I figured the two of you would be attached at the hip right now."

"Yes Meathead, where is my lovely soon-to-be-cousin. Has the poor woman finally come to her senses and realized how insane she must have been when she accepted your proposal?" Dom practically pounced at the chance to change the subject. Thinking of his friend in a dress as a Lady was strange to him, and for some reason, a little unsettling. He had only ever seen her in tunics and padded armor; that kind of thing always made it hard for people to see whether she was female or not at first glance, and he was finding it more and more difficult to ignore the fine figure that Kel cut in her gown.

There were a few smart remarks from the other men, especially the ones who had ridden with the talkative knight, before Neal could finally cut in. "That is Sir Meathead to you Domitan! And no, she has not left me. She's over in Port Caynn attending to Princess Shinko while she's receiving some visiting dignitaries from the Yamani Isle."

Kel suddenly clapped her hands together. "Oh that's right! I forgot about Mama and Papa telling me that they were going to go with Shinko to greet some important people. I think everyone will be here in time for the welcoming ball."

"Oh that'll be just jolly." Owen said exuberantly. "We can all be together again for the ball, just like old times."

"I think it'll be better since I don't have to worry about my knighthood, and the war is pretty much over," Kel replied with a satisfied smile. Everyone agreed on that with a cheer.

The rest of the meal was eaten with a great many jokes and everyone catching everyone else up with their current lives and of course the good-natured ribbing of Neal about his betrothed. Most of the rest of the meal was in fact spent making fun of Neal and his obsession with his 'beautiful Yamani Blossom' and his horrible poetry. This was a topic of fair game for everyone at the table that had spent more than an hour with the knight since he had met his beloved, especially anyone who had had to ride with him for long periods of time.

Dom was happy for the distraction. Seeing Kel as a Lady was a new experience for him and he wasn't sure what to make of it. Mocking his cousin was a nice, normal distraction that he gladly took advantage of. Despite what certain parts of himself were telling him, he firmly told himself that no matter what, Kel was Kel, and they would always be good friends. He was sure that things would return to normal for him once he saw her in her normal attire and they had a good weapons practice together. After that he may even get used to Kel as a Lady.

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><p><strong>I'm editing all of the chapters that I've put up so far. If you see anything that I missed this time around, feel free to message me.<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry about the long wait. I got bogged down with family stuff and have been away from my computer for most of the holidays. I'll post as often as I can, but I'm not promising anything. Although I will be finishing this story, and I have no intention of making you all wait for a month or more for a new chapter. In other news it has come to my attention that I suck at spelling the names of Madame Pierce's characters and I way have erred with my grammar a little. I would be like to post a help wanted sign for my story; just a watcher or two to look over my words to make sure I post the best story that I can. PM me if you're interested in the job.**

Letters

After the Midday meal was over Kel went back to her rooms to finish arranging them and visit the sparrows. She arrived at her rooms ready to sort out all of her bags, only to find that Toby had taken care of everything already. Kel smiled and shook her head, but then frowned in consternation when she saw that he had not laid out his pallet next to her bed. She searched around the room, and her smile returned and widened when she saw that he was using the room set aside for servants. Toby letting any distance between the two of them after what had happened last summer was amazing progress, him being able to sleep on his own was something that would help Kel herself sleep better at night.

When she had seen to it that her sparrows and the ones that lived in the palace were getting along well enough, she went to go seek out Toby. She knew he would be in the stables greeting all of the horses and hiding from the nobles; Toby trusted few people and even fewer noble-folk. He was exactly where she had predicted he would be; in a stall brushing the mane of one of gentle palfreys that the ladies of court preferred to ride. He appeared to be in the middle of describing to the gentle mare what it was like ride further than the royal forest, so Kel let him finish his conversation.

When it looked like the boy was done, and had moved to pulling ribbons out of the horses tail, muttering about gilding lilies, Kel finally cleared her throat. Toby whirled around, and would have fallen over if he had not been leaning on the horse he was currently working on. The aforementioned horse gave an indignant snort and wandered to the other side of her stall to eat. "Lady! What are you wearing?"

"It's called a dress Toby. Surely you've seen the Loey and Gydo wear them,"

"No, I know what they are, but what are you doing in one?"

"It's a long story; I'll tell you later, I just came to thank you for setting up everything."

"Oh that was no trouble, I like doing all that stuff."

"So did I get anything sent to my rooms while you were there?"

The hopeful look on his Mistresses face made Toby smile. "No ma'am, I would have left it out for you, or brought it to you at the Mess Hall immediately, you know that."

Kel looked down, a little shamefaced, "I know," she said with sheepish smile," I had just hoped that the messages would have beaten us here."

"Well you could check with the gate master, they get messages from outside the palace before anyone else."

"That's a splendid idea Toby. I'll go check on that now." With that Kel ruffled her young charges hair and strode purposefully out of the stables.

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><p>Dom was sneaking through the gardens hiding from a girl he had once courted that he had almost just run into. Lady Ermine had been very possessive; she had also been convinced that they were going to wed as soon as the war was over. He had tried to convince her that this was untrue, but the woman was adamant about all of this, so Dom found it easier to just avoid her any time that he was in Corus. As he was weaving his way between the passages and hidden niches throughout the labyrinth to one in particular that was placed over in one corner of the gardens near one of the gates when he found Kel sitting on a stone bench staring at a stack of envelopes. Because of her deep concentration on the stack of letters in her hands, Kel hadn't noticed Dom's entrance into her hiding place.<p>

He knew that he would probably regret it in a moment, but Dom simply couldn't resist his urge to sneak up on his legendary warrior that was his friend. He padded over to where she sat as quietly as he could. When he was standing right beside her, he leaned over and whispered in her ear "What's so interesting about a stack of envelops?"

Before he could do anything, Kel was up, had him spun around, and had his left arm pinned behind his back in a very painful position. Dom grimaced in pain; he knew he was going to regret this. After a few seconds of struggling, Dom finally gasped out "Kel, Kel its me!"

At the sound of his voice, Kel immediately released her captive and stepped away. "I'm so sorry Dom, you startled me, and you know how it is with me these days…"

"No, it was my fault, I know from experience what a bad idea it can be to sneak up on a seasoned warrior. It was an especially dangerous notion to act on with someone as accomplished as my dear Protector." This time he easily dodged the swipe that his friend aimed at him easily and grinned at her. "Sorry for startling you, I really shouldn't have snuck up on you. I knew I would probably regret doing that, I just couldn't resist; you looked so sweet sitting there." Realizing what he had just said, Dom turned a bright shade of pink. "Sorry Kel, it was a stupid of me to say that." He stooped down immediately to collect her papers and collided heads with Kel in the process.

There was a simultaneous "Sorry", and then Dom quickly scooped up the envelopes that had been dropped to hide the redness of his face, and to avoid looking into his friend's eyes. He handed the stack of papers and stepped back a few paces to put a little distance between them.

Dom broke the awkward silence that had ensued "So what's with the papers? You seemed very intent on them when I found you." Kel looked up from the envelopes with a sheepish smile. "Oh, well you know I was given special orders so that I could leave New Hope, but it you know after what happened last time…" Dom smiled and put an arm around Kel's shoulder.

"It'll be fine, dear Protector, "Dom tightened his arm around Kel so she couldn't smack him then continued, "the killing machines and Blayce are gone and you'll never have to worry about them ever again. Your people are quite capable of defending themselves, you'll be fine."

Kel sighed and leaned into Dom's, side relaxing a little before she replied," I know you're right it just… um Dom?"

"Yes Kel?"

"As nice as this is, do you think that we could go sit on the bench? I think I may need to be sitting to read some of these reports."

Dom flushed a little and dropped his arm from where it had ended up resting: on her hip. He was surprised at how comfortable it had been to stand there with his arm around her waist. 'It's just the dress'Dom thought to him-self, 'the strangeness of seeing Kel in a dress is making you act funny, now stop it'. Kel stayed where she was for a moment with a look on her face that Dom couldn't quite read. Before he could even try to understand what the expression was, it was tucked behind her Yamani mask, and she was sitting back on the bench, opening her mail. Dom sat down beside her at a respectful distance; he waited for Kel read every sheaf of paper before he finally asked, "So can I assume that all is well and that you were fretting unnecessarily Mother?"

Instead of the hit that Dom was expecting, Kel was sagged a little; in relief or weariness Dom couldn't tell. Kel inhaled deeply then replied, "Yes, you were right. Everything is under control, and Merric is doing a fine job of acting as Commander while I'm gone. All of the preparations are going well too; most of the set up may even be finished before I head home."

"What set up? What's happening over at New Hope?"

"Oh I never told you?"

"Told me what?"

"Well as one of the closest towns to the Scanran border, and with a town full of warriors, New Hope is going to become an official trading post between Scanra and Tortall."

"Oh Kel, that's great!"

"Yeah…"

"I mean that will be great for your town and all… Kel are you okay?"

Kel had slumped against him with a tired sigh. Without thinking about it, Dom wrapped one of his arms and tilted her chin. He looked intently into her eyes, "Tell me what's wrong Kel. I hate to see you look so tired."

"I just worry about them all Dom."

"But the machines…"

"I know the Killing Devices are gone, but I still have dreams sometimes."

"I thought those prophecy dreams stopped last year."

"Yes, but I still have nightmares about Haven, all of those people dead, I wasn't there to help."

"Oh, Kel…" The haunted look in her eyes broke Dom's heart. She still felt guilt over not being there to save her people, even after all of the lives she did save, all of the good she had done by her people. Kel cared so much that it hurt her sometimes. She wore herself thin worrying about everyone else, and that made Dom wonder about her wellbeing.

"Domitan!" The silence that had fallen between Kel and Dom was broken by a very shrill call of a woman. The two jumped apart, the spell broken. There was only a moment or so for the two to take in what had just a happened before the shrill voice called, closer this time, "Domitan my love, where are you?" Dom moaned with displeasure "Oh Great Mother Goddess, please hide." He recognized the shrill, demanding voice of Lady Ermine; the thought of having to deal with her while trying to sort out what had just happened with Kel made his head hurt.

"Who is that?" Kel rubbed her ear and looked questioningly up at Dom.

Dom sighed, "That is Lady Ermine. She is an attractive creature, but she appears to be madder than my own family."

"Oh really now?"

"Yes, I danced with her at a Midwinter Ball a few years ago. I flirted with her, now she thinks that we're engaged."

"You lucky man you."

"Not really, she attacked my sister last time I was at court because she thought that I was 'cheating on her'."

Kel giggled as Lady Ermine's shrill calls drew closer. "Oh this should be fun," Kel said with a grin.

"Come on Kel, you should feel sorry for me! If she finds me before tonight, I'm going to have to get Lord Raoul to send me out on Patrol and I'm going to be gone for the majority of the talks."

"What's so special about tonight?"

"I have to escort one of the ladies coming from Scanra to the dinner tomorrow night, and it will end badly for everyone if Lady Ermine decides to 'defend her claim'."

Kel sighed, then stood up with her hands on her hips, "You owe me for this you know."

"Yes I do."

"Okay, now stand up." Dom did as she said, "Okay now crawl under the bench, no Domitan don't give me that look." Dom repressed the urge to say 'Yes Mother' as he crawled under the bench and looked up at Kel expectantly. "Now hide as much of yourself as you can in the bush," she indicated the shrub right behind the bench, "and don't say another word." From his vantage point, Dom saw Kel sit on the bench above him, and then the fabric of her dress obscured his vision in a way that made him assume she had spread her skirts. It was a clever move, hid him and made her look more ladylike. Dom lowered his head so that he could see under the hem of Kel's dress.

* * *

><p>Lady Ermine strode into the clearing. Kel had to admit she was very pretty. Ermine had long shiny waves of soft dark brown hair and a very shapely figure; a perfect model of exactly the kind of woman that Dom loved to court. Most of the time she knew that having large breasts would be inconvenient and make fighting very difficult, but it was moments like this that made her feel particularly bovine; making her wish she was shapely enough to turn heads, particularly a certain Sergeant's.<p>

When Lady Ermine's eyes swept across the area, Kel noted that they were a bright and clear honey color. When her eyes landed on Kel, they lit up. "Oh kind lady, have you seen my betrothed? He is strong and handsome and has the most beautiful blue eyes. To gaze into his eyes would make your heart melt."

Kel repressed a snort at the woman's formal speech. It was easier to hold in because she couldn't help but agree with her. She did think almost all of those things. She was just never ever going to admit to him. "No sorry, I have not seen him Lady…"

"Oh, forgive my rudeness! My name is Lady Ermine of Black Lake, and what pray tell is your name fair lady?"

"My name is Lady Keladry of Mindelan?"

"Oh what a pleasure it is to meet you dear Keladry. Will you aide me in my search for my beloved?"

"Sorry, but I have some very important letters I need to read. If I do recall correctly though, I saw a man walking by going towards the main fountain." Kel was thankful for what her friends called her Yamani Mask; it was taking all of her training to not giggle.

"Oh, but how long has it been since he passed by the threshold to your little alcove?"

"He passed by here about 10 minutes ago."

"Oh thank you kind Lady!" Ermine ran forward and gave Kel a hug, then ran out of the clearing in the opposite direction of where she had come.

* * *

><p>"Well she seems nice," Kel said conversationally as Lady Ermine's shrieks and calls began to fade. She stood up to let Dom out from under the bench.<p>

"Yes, she seems sweet as honey unless you pose a threat to her happily ever after," Dom said as he stood and stretched. "She had a fit at Prince Raold and Princess Shinkokami's wedding; I had accidentally run into her before the ceremony and she had got it into her head that it was her wedding day for some reason. She walked down the aisle in an old wedding gown, holding some flowers tied together with a hair ribbon, humming the wedding march, when the actual music started and the princess walked out." He shuddered at the memory.

"What happened? What did Lady Ermine do?" Kel sat back down on the bench and clasped her hands together; her eyes alight with amusement and curiosity."

"Ermine whirled around, screamed something about her special day being stolen, then she ran at the Princess with her arms flailing."

Dom gestured expressively while he told his story and smiled down at his captivated audience. A stray thought floated across his mind and noted that Kel looked pretty cute when she was interested in a story. This thought caught him off guard, and took his brain a moment to process. When it did, a stubborn part of his brain said 'it's just the dress'. Another part of his brain seemed to smirk when it said 'sure it is,' in a very sarcastic tone that sounded painfully like that of his Meatheaded cousin.

"Then what happened," Kel asked as she leaned forward a little.

The sound of another voice beside the ones in his head jarred Dom from his mental argument, but the position she was now in gave him an unfortunate view of Kel's cleavage. While the stubborn part of his mind chanted 'it's the dress' fault' repeatedly he continued his story fighting to keep his eyes above Kel's shoulders or elsewhere. "Well, of course as soon as it looked like there would be trouble for Princess Shinkokami, the guards started moving towards Ermine to restrain her, but before anyone could get to close had already leaped forward and was about to tackle the Princess."

"So she jumped Shinko?"

"No, before Ermine could even touch her, the Princess whipped one of those heavy fan things out…"

"They're called Shikusens."

"Right, so the Princess pulled out her Shikusen and knocked Ermine out in one clean blow on top of her head." Dom demonstrated the maneuver used by bringing his hand down in a swift chopping motion.

"So what happened after that?"

"Well the wedding had to continue, so the King had Lady Ermine carried into one of the resting rooms for ladies and set someone to watch her. After that the wedding went off without a hitch."

"Did Ermine get in trouble for causing all of that trouble?"

"I'm sure she did with her own family, they must have been mortified by that particular outburst, but it can't really be helped. Most people know that the Lady is insane, but the Black Lake family is affluent enough to balance that out most of the time."

"So Black Lake is a powerful family?"

"You could say that. Mostly they're incredibly rich, the man stupid enough to marry Ermine will be a rich man indeed. I should know; The Count of Black Lake offered an impressive dowry to me to marry the silly woman." Dom smiled at the memory of the strange conversation that had followed the offer. Seeing the slightly horrified look on Kel's face at this piece of information and the look face he had just had on his own face prompted him to quickly explain before his friend went all Yamani calm on him.

"I never even considered taking the offer Kel," He quickly assured her," but I did enjoy talking Count Black Lake around in circles for a while he tried to talk me into the deal." The amused quirk of Kel's lips almost made Dom sigh in relief. Suddenly he felt the need to sit down; today was becoming more tiring than a training hike and he was considering a nap before dinner to make it through the rest of the day. Dom plopped down on the bench and closed his eyes in the silence that followed.

"So what makes tonight so important?" Kel's question woke Dom from the light doze he had fallen into.

Dom's head was still a little fuzzy from the almost slumber he had just had, so his response was a very eloquent, "What?"

"You said that Ermine couldn't see you until tonight, why does it have to wait until then."

"Oh that," Dom smiled with relief as he understood what was going on again. "The men of the Own are setting up a stand in for me."

"You mean a look-a-like?"

"No, nothing that complicated. They just find a naive lording willing to escort her."

"And this works," Kel said, doubt lacing her voice.

"Yep, Ermine has someone to suffocate with affection, and some lucky boy receives some vital experience and life lessons about women. Who knows we may even find her a proper husband one day."

Kel still looked a little confused. 'She's cute when she looks confused,' the Neal sounding voice in Dom's head noted. He cringed a little when the stubborn part of his head started screaming 'it's the dress' fault' again.

"Dom, are you alright? You've been acting a little strange today," Kel said, her eyes filled with concern for him.

"Yes, I'm fine. Now weren't you about to ask me something?" Dom tried to look as normal to his friend as possible while trying to ignore the bickering voices in his head; the Neal one telling informing him on how cute Kel looked when she was concerned, the other one now screeching an alternating chorus of 'it's the dress' fault' and 'she's just a friend'.

"Oh, well I was just about to ask how giving her another guy to pay attention to solved your problem. I mean won't she still go after you when she sees you any ways?"

"That's the strangest part," Dom replied, watching a few sparrows that were flying towards them, "As long as we find her someone to be with, she almost completely ignores me. I thought it was because she thought that 'Domitan' was whoever she was with, but when I do talk to her she does call me by my proper name. At this point I can only figure that she just wants someone to love, and I happen to be her default guy." He shrugged at the situation, and then held out an arm for the small flock to land on.

"Someone to love," Dom heard Kel murmur to herself. When Dom turned to look at Kel, she was surrounded by her little sparrows, her face as calm looking as the surface of a lake. Today was getting to complicated for him; he needed some rest.

"Hey Kel," he began as he stood and stretched, "it's been a long day for both of us, I think I'm going to rest my eyes in my own room."

"That would make hiding from the 'fair Lady Ermine' much easier," Kel agreed, she had pulled out a bag of seeds and was feeding some to the sparrows out of her palm," I have to send some letters out and turn in some reports to Lord Raoul any ways."

"Do you want me to walk you to your room?" Dom was surprised to hear himself make the offer. It was a normal thing for him to do on any other day, but today just seemed so out of place with his normal life.

Kel treated him with a smile, making his insides feel funny, "Sure, that would be nice," she dusted off her hands and shooed off her little friends. "Okay I'm ready to go."

* * *

><p>They walked to Kel's room in companionable silence. Dom felt an urge to hold her hand; it was a strange and tempting thought that the Sergeant had to bury as deep into his subconscious as possible. To break the silence and to distract him from the continuous argument still going on in his head, he said "So who are these delegates that your parents and Yuki and the Princess greeting and bringing back for the peace talks?" The grin on Kel's face and the way she tried to hide her face by looking away gave Dom reason to believe that he had just hit distraction gold. "What are you smiling about? There has to be a plan in that smile. What are you planning?"<p>

Kel's eyes shined with mischief when she looked up at him with a grin. Dom could feel his heart begin to beat faster. It was becoming increasingly difficult as the day went on to ignore the voice in his head that was telling him that Kel was quite attractive. Luckily his thoughts were interrupted again by Kel. "There aren't any real delegates coming for the peace talks," Kel admitted with an evil smile.

"What?"

"Don't tell Neal, but Yuki has been corresponding with both of their mother's. Since the war is ending, and we don't have to worry about a lot of attacks in the near future, we women decided that a wedding should take place."

"So delegates are in fact…"

"Yuki's parents."

"So you ladies have been planning a wedding behind my cousins back? That's pretty sneaky."

"Not quite the ceremony part of the wedding, but the arrangements part to be certain."

"Arrangements?"

"Yuki's family wants to be sure that she marries well; most marriages in the Yamani Isle are made for the benefits of the two families that make the arrangement," Kel explained.

"So love doesn't enter the equation?"

"Not very often," Kel replied offhandedly. "It's not unheard of, but love usually comes later."

"So Yuki has been going behind Neal's back with all of these letters to secure herself a marriage to the man she wants to marry; you know, if you can really consider The Meathead a man."

Kel giggle a little at his last comment and said, "Well Neal has been dragging his feet about this whole marriage ever since he got permission to court Yuki, and she got pretty impatient about waiting for him to go to his parents to initiate the marriage negotiations…"

"So she took matters into her own hands," Dom finished the thought with some awe in his voice, and then he grinned. "You know, I think I shall enjoy having Yuki as a Cousin-in-Law, she knows how to get things done." In his giddiness he took Kel's hand and twirled her up in a circle, dancing them both around a few times," Tomorrow night will be so much fun," he laughed exuberantly then he let Kel go, still grinning like a loon, "You know our dear Meathead can't stand to be surprised."

"That's one of the things that make this plan so great."

"Just imagine the look on his face when he sees his mother, his bride to be, and her parents instead of a group of Yamani delegates."

"I'm looking forward to tomorrow night well, but Dom…"

"Yes Kel?"

"We need to stop."

"Why?"

"We're in front of my door."

"Oh right."

As Kel rummaged in a hidden pocket in her dress for her room key, Dom wondered about what to do next. He had said he was going to take a nap, but he had a feeling that with all of the things that he needed think about, he was going to get little to no sleep before dinner. He had no idea what to make of everything that had happened today. It also didn't help that parts of his mind were still at war with each other. His thoughts were interrupted by the click of a key turning a lock.

"Thank you for walking me back to my rooms Dom, I guess I'll see you at dinner?" Kel asked as she opened her door.

"Yeah, sure." Dom closed his eyes and sighed, he really needed some sleep; surely all of this would make more sense after some good rest.

Kel put a hand on his arm causing him to look at her. "Are you sure you're alright Dom, you've been acting really strange today." Once again, Dom saw concern on Kel's face, and it made him feel terrible because he knew that she was worried about him now.

He tried to reassure his friend with a smile, and then he put his other hand on Kel's. "I'm fine really, I just need some rest. It's just been a weird day for me; I'm sure I'll feel better after some rest."

"Well if your sure…"

"I am," he said firmly.

"Well if I don't get to see you tonight, I can still count on you for some combat training right?"

"Of course."

"Alright then, see you later then." With a final smile, Kel closed the door to her quarters and Dom was left alone in the hallway.

* * *

><p>It wasn't until he had made it back to his own rooms; over in the Owns barracks that the full weight of what had happened throughout the day finally hit him. He couldn't believe how intimate he had gotten with Kel; she was one of his closest friends for Mithros' sake! How could he act like that with such a good friend? He had known Kel for over six years and the way he had acted around her was downright idiotic. Because of a simple change in her normal wardrobe he was acting like a complete idiot, and he could kick himself for all of that.<p>

'Are you sure that it's just the dress?' The obnoxious meathead voice was at it again.

"Yes it's just the dress." Dom answered himself vehemently.

'But you've always thought that Kel was an attractive girl, the dress is just calling attention to it.'

"Since when have I thought Kel was pretty?"

'For quite a while now actually.'

"Says who?" Dom knew that he was fighting a losing battle; he was fighting with his own subconscious for Mithros' sake. He just could quite accept the fact that he was attracted to a girl he almost considered a sister.

'I'm a part of your mind, so you're the one saying it, or at least thinking it.'

Dom sighed, closed his eyes, and rubbed at the bridge of his nose. He was about to give in when the stubborn side of his brain said, 'I think all of this will go back to normal if you see Kel looking like her normal self again, and you will tomorrow morning.'

"That's right! Kel and I are having a combat training session tomorrow! I'll see her looking like her normal self, and everything will go back to normal." With that settled Dom kicked off his boots and flopped down on the bed. He was just getting comfortable and was about to fall asleep when his inner Neal spoke up with a smirk in his voice, 'you know that you're just grasping at some very intangible straws now right?' This started another round of arguments between the warring sides of his brain that took awhile to settle. When he did finally manage to fall asleep, most of his dreams involved a certain Lady Knight, many of those dreams leaving him breathing heavily in his sleep.

Dom ended up sleeping past dinner and did not awake until he heard a sharp rapping on his door early the next morning.


	4. Chapter 4

**Another chapter up! Yay! I want to thank all of my faithful watchers for continuing to watch me. I know that the going is slow, but you know, life and stuff gets in the way. I also want to thank you for the positive feedback I've been receiving, but I am open for constructive criticism, and more than willing to talk about certain points of the story. And finally: I was serious about that proof-reader job; I've never really done this before, and none of my friends really reads the PoTS series, so I must turn to the internet and it's viewers for help and support in this instance. Anyways, enough with my babbling, on with the story. **

Next Phase

Kel was up early the next morning to practice some battle dances with her glaive. Toby was up shortly after she was dressed in the clothing she wore to do weapons training, and at this Kel sighed. "You know most boys your age would be sleeping until breakfast, and then a good chunk of the time of the time someone would still need to toss them out of bed," Kel pointed out, hands on her hips.

"Yes Mother, but those boys don't have so active a mistress to run after either," Toby replied with a cheeky grin. "Besides," he continued, "it's good to see you looking like your normal self. Begging your pardon Lady," He added hastily when he saw that Kel had arched one of her brows at him.

"You know," Kel began thoughtfully as she began pulling on a pair boots, "when I was your age I used to wear a dress every evening to dinner; just to remind the other pages that I was a girl. I also wore dresses, on occasion, in my early squire years when I was in the great progress."

She thought about her page and early squire years as she fed the sparrows. She remembered all of the times she had had to fight in a dress, and of the few times she had turned actually turned heads while she had been wearing a dress. As she continued to go through her list of morning activities she started to think more about yesterday, and she actually had to suppress a giggle; the guys had been absolutely floored by how feminine she could appear with such a simple change of clothing. 'Even it I am a cow in a dress, at least I'm a cow that can turn heads, if for nothing else but shock value. It was especially enjoyable to see the look on Neal and…'

"Pardon Mistress," Tobe's voice interrupted the Lady Knight's train of thought, "you have a couple of visitors." At this Kel turned around to see The Lioness and the former Rider Commander Buri standing in her doorway each with large grins plastered across their faces.

"Oh, Lady Alanna, Commander Buri, I didn't know you were coming here. What brings you to my chambers?" Kel immediately rearranging papers and tidying her already impeccably clean room as she spoke. Even if she was on familiar terms with both warriors, Kel still felt a little flustered around her childhood hero.

"Don't start going all formal on us Kel," Alanna said with a flip of her hand, "We're all friends here."

"Sorry… Alanna." Kel stopped moving things around her desk and faced the two warriors directly.

"No need to apologize Kel."

"Alright then, what can I do for you?"

Now it was Buri's turn to cut in. "Well you know with all the delegates coming in tonight, Alanna and I decided that we should burn off a little steam before all of them get here."

"Besides," Alanna said with a grin, "we are long overdue for you to show me how to use that pig-sticker of yours."

"I would be happy to show you how to use my glaive," Kel responded with a smile, "I just need to ask Tobe to do something and then I'll join you."

Tobe looked up from putting order to all of the things on the desk that Kel had just tried to re-order. "You want me to do something Lady," he asked.

"Yes Tobe, I need you to go see to Hoshi and Peach Blossom as soon as you are able to this morning. I may be going for a ride this afternoon, and Hoshi was acting strangely when I went to go and check on her and Peach Blossom Last night."

Kel, who was now focusing most of her attention on her young friend, completely missed the grin that had flashed between Alanna and Buri as Kel made that statement. Tobe, however did not. He was a smart lad, and something about the way they looked at Kel when they had traded that odd look made Tobe keep what he had seen to himself; he could confront the two women about it later. He had no intentions of letting any harm befall his mistress, whether the person with the plans was Nobel or not.

There was also something strange about the expression of his Lady's face. She had on that Yamani mask of hers for some reason, but he could see a strange glimmer in her eyes. There wasn't much he could do about it though; he would just have to trust Lady Kel.

Tobe said, "Yes mistress," and then left with a look on his face that said that he had much to think about. Kel smiled and grabbed her glaive from its place on the wall thinking, 'Oh is he in for a surprise'. She then turned around and faced Alanna and Buri once again. "I think for the time being we can make do with regular spears for teaching tools if you're ready." She said with a grin.

"We have the right tools for the learning," Buri said as she began exiting the room, "what we were lacking was a teacher."

Alanna followed Buri, and Kel followed after the both of them. Kel was the last one out of the room. When she had finished lock the door, she turned around and couldn't help but laugh at what she saw. Right outside of the door to her rooms were a pair of glaives and a fully dressed but snoring Neal, all three the wall next to her door. "How did you manage all this," she asked the two women when she had gotten a hold on her laughter; she waved her hand to encompass the two gleaming weapons and her snoring friend.

"Well we got the glaives as Mid-winter gifts from princess Shinko, but she and Thayet haven't had any time to teach us how to use them." Alanna informed Kel

"And Alanna barged into Neal's room and tossed him out of bed about 15 minutes ago," Buri added before Kel could ask about him.

"Well I need to be able to test him on how well he's kept up with his training. I need to make sure he hasn't been slacking off, hiding in his infirmary," Alanna explained.

"You call it training, I call it creative torture," Neal said groggily, mostly awake now and looking around the hall in realization and dismay, "Mithros, I was hoping this was a bad dream."

"Neal, you were sleeping upright against a stone wall, and it looks as though Lady Alanna forced you into a shirt," Kel pointed out to her grumpy friend, not even bothering to conceal her smile.

"Yes, well I happen to be a very vivid dreamer. It is both a gift and a curse; it makes my more troublesome dreams particularly nightmarish."

"I will be more than a mere nightmare for you if I find that you have let your fighting skills dull." It was impressive how ominous and looming a figure Alanna could make herself, despite being a head shorter than her former squire. "Now then," Alanna said in a pleasant tone as she collected her glaive and hooked her arm through Neal's, "shall we go and beat a few things with sticks?" With that said she began to stroll down the hallway towards one of the training yards, weapon in hand, and a squalling Neal in tow.

"We should probably follow them." Buri stated as she collected her own weapon from the wall, "if we don't hurry, Alanna might decide us Neal for some sort of target practice."

"You're probably right, we should go after them," Kel agreed, then both women turned and headed in the direction that the Lioness had just dragged Neal off to.

Out in the practice yard, Kel was showing Buri and Alanna some basic forms to practice with the glaives. Alanna had set Neal to practicing his archery until she could 'test him'; he was doing as he had been told to do, but he complained loudly about everything from the early hour he was being forced to be awake at, to the unfairness of the Lionesses' of him. Kel and Buri had had to step in and calm fiery-tempered Knight several times so that she did not try to test some of her newly acquired knowledge of glaive out on her former squire's sorry hide.

Kel was about to set to practicing her pattern dances, until she heard a joyous shout of, "Lady," and was nearly bowled over by speeding figure ramming into her waist. She just managed to keep her balance, and when she looked down she saw that it was none other than Tobe who was latched to her waist. Kel grinned and said in a casual tone, "So I take it that you liked my little surprise."

"You knew!" The look of sheer astonishment and jubilance on the boy's face made Kel laugh.

"Of course I knew. Do you really think that Onua would have approached you with her offer without asking me first?"

"So you're alright with this Lady?"

"Of course I am. You can start now, or you can wait until the girls come down here in a year or two."

"Excuse me for braking up such a close little family moment," Neal drawled, "but do you think that you could explain what just happened to us slower folk over here?"

"Yes do tell us what this is about," agreed Buri.

"I agree with Neal for once," Alanna relented, with an indignant protest form Neal cut short with a heavy glare leveled in his direction, "do you mind telling us what's going on here?"

"Alright," Kel yielded, "Well it happened last night…"

*Flashback*

_Kel did not stay in the dining hall for the evening meal for very long. She had pleaded tiredness from and headed out to the stables to check on her horses. As she began to brush out Peach Blossom's coat for the meditative calm of it, Kel let herself get lost in her thoughts. _

_She had been disappointed not to see Dom at dinner, but she decided that he had either been a lot more tired than he had let on earlier, or that he was still hiding from the Lady Ermine; it had been entertaining to see the lordling being introduce to the overenthusiastic young lady. Within minutes of her meeting him, The Lady of Black Lake had already declared her undying love for the man, and was happily fawning over him. While the men made jokes about how easily distracted the Lady could be, Kel found herself a little jealous of the girl; she wished she could fall in and out love so easily. Instead she was forced to hold onto a small flame of desire for a man that would always care for her, but never look at her in a loving and tender way._

_Her self-pitying thoughts were interrupted by a loud cough, clearly made to get her attention. Kel turned around to find the Riders' Horsemistress Onua leaning against a stable wall directly behind her. "Good evening Horsemistress, I apologize if I'm in your way. I just wanted to check on Peach Blossom and Hoshi before I went to bed," Kel explained, gesturing to the two horses. She didn't know the woman very well, they had only been introduced in passing to each other in passing because of their mutual friendship with Buri._

"_Don't bother with the formalities," The Horsemistress said, making a sweeping gesture with her hand, as if to sweep away said formalities, "just call me Onua."_

"_You can call me Kel then."_

"_Alright then Kel, if you don't mind me being so blunt with you, I have an important question that I need to ask you."_

"_No, I don't mind, what is it that you want to ask?"_

"_Not that it's any of my business, but I happen to know of the lad that you purchased the servitude of about a year ago."_

"_Yes, what about Tobe?"_

"_Well, I was just wondering: what do you have planned for him once his contract is fulfilled?"_

_This question took Kel a bit by surprise; she had been thinking about what she could do for him once he had 'paid of his debt'. Truthfully she would have released him from his contract last summer after all he had done for her in Scanra, but at that point, and even now, Kel couldn't get rid of the boy or send him off if she wanted to. "Well I had been thinking of approaching the chief hostler Stefan. With the gift with horses that Tobe has…"_

"_Would you object to Tobe working for the Riders," Onua interrupted._

"_Working for the Riders? No of course not. Why?"_

"_Well I'm not getting any younger, and I've been looking for a good assistant for a while now. I think your boy might be just the kind of help that I'm looking for."_

"_You know," Kel said with a grin beginning to spread across her face." I think that that might just be the thing for you. I also have a couple of girls who are interested in becoming Riders some day. They have about two more years before they'll be old enough to join, but as soon as they are, I'll send all three of them down to work with you people."_

"_I was actually hoping to take him on as my apprentice as soon as possible," Onua replied with a sheepish grin._

"_Well, no matter what choices or plans you and I make together tonight; it all boils down to what Tobe ends up choosing. While I may be confident that he would be honored to accept your apprenticeship, I have to warn you that he won't just up and leave his friends. That little group of orphaned children that lives up at New Hope is tighter that family."_

"_Do you think I can at least borrow him while you're here? I can show him the ropes and get him acquainted with the Riders' lifestyle, show him what he's gonna be getting himself into if he accepts the job."_

"_I think something like that could be arranged…"_

_That two women spent the rest of the night negotiating and making plans for Tobe's future. Any traces of Kel's self pity completely forgotten._

*End Flashback*

"So you're going to going to be Onua's new assistant." Buri commented thoughtfully.

"You mean you didn't know," Kel replied with a tone shock.

"Ever since I gave up my position of Command to Evin, they don't really tell me much."

"Well I for one," Neal said as he threw an arm around the young boy, "am proud of our horse whisperer."

"It still all comes down to what Tobe decides." Kel pointed out, "So what are you going to do?"

Everyone turned towards Tobe expectantly. Tobe turned a light shade of pink at all the undivided attention he was now suddenly receiving, and quickly found a great interest in his shoes. "Well if it's alright with you Lady, I would like to join Horse Mistress Onua as soon as I can." He finally looked up and said.

Kel was a little shocked at first, but still smiled when she replied, "It's your decision, I will support whatever you decide on. The only thing I ask of you is that you write a letter to everyone explaining your choice for everyone back at New Hope; I want some back up when I have to break the news to the girls…"

"You can't get rid of me that easily!"

"But you just said…"

"I mean to be the Horse Mistress' assistant for the summer. I can't just leave you alone by yourself yet."

Kel smiled at how Tobe implied that she would be entirely lost without him, though at this point in their relationship, she couldn't entirely disagree with that opinion.

"Besides," Tobe continued, "what kind of man would I be if I just up and left New Hope forever without a goodbye to all of my friends?"

"Well you're not really…mph!" Whatever smart remark that Neal was about to make was silenced by Alanna swiftly fitting her hand over his mouth, then using the leverage of her arm on his neck to yank him down to her level.

"And you've discussed this with Onua?" Kel asked.

"Yes, she said that as long as you agreed to the terms that she would train me this summer and have me escorted back to New Hope in autumn." Tobe replied.

"Well if that's too much trouble, we can always ask the third company of the Own to bring you up on their way back to fort Mastiff. I'm sure Dom won't… Oh no, Dom!" The discussion that she had had with him yesterday and the promise that they had made came rushing back to her. "We were supposed to do some weapons training this morning!"

"Well," Neal began to say as he carefully extracted himself from the Lioness' powerful grip, "No one saw him at dinner last night."

"I think he was still hiding from Lady Ermine…"

"Is she still after him?" Neal interrupted with an almost evil glee.

"Not anymore," Kel replied with confidence, but then wavered, "at least I don't think so. I saw Lerant and Wolset introducing Lady Ermine to a good looking young man last night…"

"Let me guess," Neal interrupted once more, "She was instantly taken with him. I was wondering what all of that fuss over on the other side of the room was last night."

"Well I should go and tell him how well it all went last night; knowing Wolset, he left Dom to stew in anxiety all night," Kel decided. She bid a quick farewell and a promise to return as soon as possible.

As soon as Kel was out of ear shot Tobe rounded on the two women. "What are you planning?" he glared accusingly at the warrior women.

"What are you talking about?" Buri looked the picture of a confused maiden, which only made Tobe's glare even stonier.

"Neal, go get a few of your year mates," Alanna instructed, "We should have a more varied group to practice with."

"You just want a bigger audience for when you trounce me." Neal whined.

"Buri," Alanna continued, ignoring her former squire's complaints, "Would you please go get Raoul and Thayet?"

"Sure, but what are you going to do?" Buri could tell that Alanna wanted to do something about Tobe without Neal's knowledge, but why did she have to go?

"Young master Boone and myself are going to have a nice long discussion while he helps me saddle my mount; I feel like a joust with my favorite former squire." The resulting over-dramatic cry of agony from said former squire made everyone the three remaining people laugh. When Neal was far enough away Alanna turned towards Buri and whispered, "Just trust me on this alright? I need to talk to Thayet and Raoul. Also Daine, I'm gonna need her too; its' all part of the plan."

Buri sighed and turned to go run her errand of cohort collecting. She was just going to have to trust that there was more of a method to her friend's madness than just torturing the two victims of her scheme's.

When Buri had left, Alanna turned to the stony-eyed young boy and bluntly said, "I'm not going to hurt her, this may actually help her."

"If I think this will harm my mistress in any way…" Tobe began to warn.

"I'm sure it has something do with outing me to Kel and never being able to ride a horse that you've been anywhere near," Alanna finished for him dryly. "Now follow me; I have a lot to explain, and if you like what you hear, I do believe that I may have a job for you…"


	5. Chapter 5 Fighting

**So I've decided to start posting shorter chapters. It will have the same content as it was supposed to have initially, but if I make the pieces I post shorter, then I can release more of the story more quickly. So from now on, if you feel some of the chapters are a little incomplete feeling, that probably mean that I took a chapter and split it in half for the purpose of making your wait time shorter. And seriously folk, I would really appreciate some feed-back on this stuff.**

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><p>Fighting<p>

Dom awoke to the sound of a strong hammer on wood nearby. As he opened his eyes reluctantly, he noted that from the light streaming through the windows of his bedroom that it was not quite true dawn. He swore and sat up. 'I must have slept through the whole night,' he thought to himself in dismay. Deciding that there was nothing he could do about the time he had lost he stood up, stretched out the stiffness from his body, and then began stripping off the rumpled clothes that he had fallen asleep in.

He had his shirt halfway over his head, when he heard the knock on his door. Assuming his Corporal Wolset was the only person who would be knocking on his door at this early morning he called for the person to come in. The door opened as he finished pulling his shirt off.

* * *

><p>Kel opened the door and suppressed the sharp intake of breath that she was about to take in at the sight of Dom's shirtless back. She had forgotten how pretty he was to look at. She was glad that he was facing the opposite direction; this way he couldn't see the blush that see was fighting to repress and she did not have to deal with the her own actions if she saw the sculpted bare chest that she knew that he possessed. 'Stop it,' she tried to order herself firmly, 'the two of you are just friends, and that all you ever will be.'<p>

'But it never hurts to just look,' a treacherous voice in her mind put in. Before Kel could begin another long argument with herself as to why it was a bad idea to pine after her friend, she was interrupted by the object of her internal dispute.

"I just woke up," Dom began as he walked over to his wash basin, "I can't believe I slept through supper."

'That would explain why he was missing last night.' Kel thought to herself.

Before she could make a comment on this, Dom continued with an edge of irritation, "I can't believe you and Quisam left me up here all night. You didn't even bother to check on me; did you want to make me stew in my own Juices about whether or not The Lady Black Lake liked her new pet?"

'He doesn't even know that I'm me! He probably thinks that I'm Wolset or Learant.' Kel raged inside her head. 'I guess it does explain some, I know that he's a shameless flirt, and that we're close enough, but had never pegged him for an exhibitionist,' Kel rationalized as she settled into a leaning position against the door frame. 'Well,' she thought to herself with the barest hint of a smirk on her lips, 'he can keep on going until he bothers to turn around.' With that she crossed her arms and settled in to wait for Dom to notice who his visitor actually was.

Dom finally began speaking again when he had finished cleaning his teeth, "I supposed it may have been for the best in last night's; I mean suppose Ermine saw me before she saw my replacement before she saw me, that wouldn't have ended well." Kel saw that the very idea of the plan failing made her friend shiver a little in fear.

Kel decided to take a small amount of pity on the man and finally drawled, "Oh I wouldn't worry about your fair Lady, she declared her undying love for the poor lad that the men set her up with, not ten minutes after their introductions."

Dom spun around at the sound of the decidedly female and un-Wolset-like voice that was finally responding to him. "K-Kel, what are you doing here," he stammered when he saw who it was that had actually been standing behind him.

"If I'm remembering correctly, you and I had a date with some weapons and the practice courts this morning," Kel reminded her friend. "When I can over here to come and get you, Wolset was awake, he told me that I could head for your rooms; I foolishly thought that that meant that you were awake." She allowed herself a small smile; she was right, he was quite a sight when shirtless. She also couldn't help her thinking that he looked kind of cute when he was flustered.

"Oh! Kel I'm so sorry," Dom groaned and covered his face with his hands for a moment, then looked at her beseechingly, "I took that nap yesterday, and then the next thing I know you were knocking on my door…"

"I know the rest of the story," Kel relented; she couldn't let him squirm for long, not with those big blues eyes of his gazing at her so pathetically. "Now that you are awake, why don't you finish getting ready, then we can head out to the practice courts," she continued, saving Dom from further explanation and herself from contemplating her shirtless friend, "I'm teaching Lady Alanna and Buri how to use a glaive, but Alanna did drag Neal out of bed this morning so you can practice with him."

"Sparring with him is more like combat drills with a practice dummy," Dom said with ease as he sat down on the edge of his bed to don socks and boots, "It's just the kind of light exercise I need before breaking a very long fast" His easy almost flowery speech told Kel that he was now over whatever had been affecting him moments ago.

After he had completed the task of putting on both boots, Dom stood up and crossed the room to grab his weapons. He looked like he had every intention of leaving his room in the breeches he had worn the day before and no shirt. As entertaining as seeing how long it would take him to realize these things on his own, Kel let her better judgment act on this. "Dom," she caught his attention before continuing, "while I appreciate you not wanting to make me wait, I don't think that you want to leave your room looking like you just tumbled out of bed," she finished with a gesture at his rumpled trousers and his naked chest.

Dom colored slightly when he realized what Kel was talking about. "Why don't I step outside, while you put on some proper clothing," she offered, "we can leave after your ready."

Her friend nodded and muttered a "Thank you" as Kel exited to room. As soon as the door was closed, she leaned against wall next to that door and let out breath. 'How can he still have such a strong effect on you, he's just supposed to be a friend, she berated herself. 'Well,' she though wryly to herself, 'so much for not falling in love again.'

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><p>As soon as Kel shut the door, Dom ran over to his clothes press and pulled out some clothing suitable for weapons practice. He dressed as quickly as he possibly could without harming himself or objects around the room, then he grabbed his weapons from where he had dropped them, and then he vaulted out the door. He scanned the hallway from where he stood, trying to spot his companion, but he didn't see her. His frantic search was interrupted by a distinct cough. He turned quickly to find his missing friend emerging from behind the door that he had just burst open. She regarded him with a quirked brow, and he couldn't help but grin sheepishly, "Sorry about that, it's been kind of an off day for me."<p>

"Yes it has been quite a hectic twenty minutes for you," Kel agreed with a hint of a smirk.

Dom could feel himself flush a little at her reply. "So, shall we go meet the ladies and my meathead of a cousin down at the practice yard?"

"Yes let's go; I think we've been keeping them waiting long enough." Kel agreed as she turned and started walking down the hall. Dom followed her, and the two walked beside each other in a semi companionable silence.

Despite his own convictions that Kel was just a friend, almost a sister even, that one nagging voice in his head was still managing to insert some uncomfortably intimate thoughts about his friend. 'So much for Kel looking normal to you once you see her in normal clothes,' the voice drawled.

'Shut up,' Dom ordered.

'I mean really, she does look pretty nice, even in sweaty trousers and shirt," the voice continued, ignoring Dom's orders.

'Shut up,' Dom repeated.

'Actually,' the voice continued, and Dom was sure that if he could see the face of the devious, taunting voice that it would have a very evil grin plastered across it's smug face, 'the sweat makes it even better, because it makes her shirt cling to her body…'

"So what all did I miss last night?" Dom hoped that listening to Kel would be a good distraction for the nagging voice in his head.

"Well as I said not ten minutes after the Lady Ermine was introduced to her latest suitor…" and Kel began to recount everything that had happened last night.

As she spoke, Dom did his best to pay attention to every word that the Lady Knight, but the voices were arguing again, and this time the side that liked to look at Kel was winning. From the corner of his eye, and the quick looks he allowed himself when he was sure that she wasn't looking, The Sergeant had to agree, the that the sweat from her training drills earlier that morning did make her shirt cling to her body in a rather appealing way…

"Kel, Sergeant Domitan, your just in time," Dom's train of thought was thankfully interrupted by the authoritative voice of the Lioness, "Queenscove and I were about to test our skills in the noble art of the joust." There was something about the way that the older Lady Knight had said 'noble art' that made the phrase sound utterly diabolical. He and Kel had been passing the practice yard used for working with horses and jousting. The Lioness and his cousin the Meathead were on their horses, lances in hand. Some of Kel's year mates were sitting on the fence making cat calls at the younger knight. Neal looked quite uncomfortable on his perch, and Dom suspected that his cousin had been forced into the saddle by his friends.

One of the lads, a tall dark haired man looked over to where the Lioness had directed her own announcement and grinned. "Kel," the dark-haired man called out and was waving her over, "we're thinking of putting bets on this, do you want to join?"

"Now Faleron, unless I was betting on the Lady Alanna, I don't think I'm quite insane enough to make such a foolish bet," Kel had her arms crossed and a raised eyebrow as she replied, though it was clear that she was happy to see him.

"None of us are that mad Kel, we're actually taking bets on how long Neal can stay on his horse," the man, Dom now rembering that his name was Faleron of King's Reach, explained with a grin.

"I have a few coins that say that Neal won't last past the first round," called out another tall dark-haired man from the far side of the fence.

"This is an incredibly unsupportive of your good friend," Neal called indignantly from his saddle.

"You're right, I think that your giving him too little credit," another voice piped in, Dom did recognize the Prince Roald, he was sitting on the fence looking quite serious.

"Thank you," Neal beamed at his friend, "you know…"

"I mean he should be able to stay on his horse for at least two or three rounds," the Prince interrupted with a smile.

"Now that's hardly fair…" Neal objected.

"I'll put some money down on the Meathead lasting two rounds, but then going down on the third round," Dom interrupted his spluttering cousin. He couldn't help himself, making Neal angry was hilarious.

When bets were finished being placed, Dom saw Kel go over and greet her year mates. She received a friendly hug from each of them, and sight made Dom feel uneasy for reasons that he could not quite place. When Kel finished talking with her friends, she headed over to talk to Alanna. Now that he no longer felt the obligation to watch Kel, he turned his gazed upon his unfortunate cousin.

Looking at Neal trussed up on his horse unhappily awaiting his fate, Dom almost felt bad for his cousin; to be singled out by the Lady Alanna seemed like it would be a terrible ordeal. On the other hand, the Meathead probably deserved his fate. And it got his mind away from his internal conflict.


	6. Update

**Sorry to get everyone's hopes up by posting, but feel bad about leaving this story on such a cliffhanger. My computer crashed a couple of days ago. This has left me without access to a lot of files, including the most recent chapter of TWNLABG. I'll post the new chapter as soon as I have my computer up and running.**


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